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Harvard student orchestra that was suspended did not violate hazing policy, school finds

The college suspended its Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra in September amid questions about an off-campus retreat.

A pedestrian passes Harvard Yard. Craig F. Walker / The Boston Globe, File

November 26, 2025

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After suspending the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra in September amid questions about an off-campus retreat, Harvard College has determined the student group didn’t violate its hazing policy, after all.

Federico Cortese, the student-run orchestra’s music director and conductor, confirmed Harvard’s Administrative Board and Dean of Students Office both dropped the hazing charge. He did not respond to a request for further comment.

However, the orchestra will remain suspended through December and still faces probation for the spring semester after Harvard found that the group “held social events without properly registering and providing alcohol to minors,” The Harvard Crimson reported.

Previously:

Harvard student orchestra suspended over hazing allegations

A Harvard spokesperson declined to comment on the matter, which he said relates to student records.

News of the group’s suspension came shortly after the orchestra’s annual retreat to the Greenwood Music Camp in Cummington, the Crimson reported at the time. According to the student newspaper, returning HRO members blindfolded new recruits, brought them outside, walked them up and down a hill, and asked them to tap an upperclassman once for a drink of water or twice for a shot of vodka.

The suspension, which lasts through the end of the semester in mid-December, impacts only the orchestra’s activities as a social group, not as an orchestra. The orchestra has continued to perform under its academic class number — Music 110 — instead of the HRO name.

Speaking to Boston.com in September, Cortese described the incident as an “unfortunate and very unexpected situation.”

While he acknowledged orchestra members made a “very serious mistake and a very poor choice,” he also denied seeing “anything resembling a discriminatory, intimidating or abusive behavior” in his time with HRO.

“I can attest without the least hesitation, that HRO members are not only outstanding musicians, but also a remarkably warm, kind, friendly and respectful group of students making music together at a very high level in a very healthy and generous environment,” Cortese said at the time. “I have no hesitation or doubt saying that.”